This system, however, (ingenious and unrivalled as it certainly is,) has not escaped the censure of some writers. It must nevertheless be acknowleged, that their remarks are either founded in envy, or that they proceed from ignorance.
There are other systems of fortification which have been proposed by the writers of other countries besides France. We shall give a brief detail of them, and leave the inquisitive to go more at length into the nature of their methods, by referring them to the different treatises.
The Italians have furnished several authors who have written variously on the subject of fortification. The method proposed by Sardis has been generally esteemed the best.
The Spaniards in their methods of fortifying, never adopt that which adds a second flank. The obtuse flanked angle is not looked upon by their best engineers as a defective system in fortification.
Both the Italians and the Spaniards speak frequently of the ordre renforcé, which was originally invented to lessen the number of bastions in a great town or fortified place, and to render consequently the line of defence equal to the range of musquetry.
The Chevalier St. Julien, a very able engineer, has published a method, by which, he asserts, that works may be constructed not only at a less expence than others require, but in a manner that must render his defence or attack more formidable. He has likewise invented a new method for the defence of small places, which is preferable to the first, although it is not without faults. According to his system, the reach of the musquet is taken from the centre of the curtain. To this end he directs, that a covert lodgment, 7 feet high, and 10 toises wide, be constructed from that spot to the gorge of the half moon or ravelin. Cannon is disposed along the faces, and a gallery is erected for the musquetry, which likewise serves as a passage to the ravelin.
Francis Marchi, a gentleman of Bologna, in his folio edition, has furnished us with upwards of 160 different methods of constructing fortifications.
The Dutch uniformly pursue the system published by Marollois.
Bombelle has likewise established three sorts of fortification, the great royal, grand royal; the mean; and the little royal, petit royal. His method agrees with the sound maxims of good fortification much more than any of the preceding ones.
Blondel has published a system of fortification, which he divides into two principal heads; the great, whose exterior side contains 200 toises; and the little, where the side does not exceed 170 toises. His reason is, because he objects to the line of defence having more than 140 toises, which is the furthest reach of musquetry, or less than 120 toises, to prevent an unnecessary increase of bastions. The principles of Blondel’s system resemble, in a great degree, those upon which Pagan’s is founded, and chiefly consist in methods of fortifying inward posts. The invention has certainly great merit, but its adoption must prove expensive in all its practical branches. It must, moreover, be manifest, that the four long batteries which are supported by flanks of his construction, must serve as so many scaling ladders, or steps to the besiegers, the instant they have effected a breach by cannon shot, or shells.